Little Bat and the Chamber of Secrets
by HopeCoppice
Summary: The Slytherins return for their second year at Hogwarts. But with a Basilisk on the loose, what adventures await Draco, Cassie and Laura? Book 2 of the 'Little Bat' series, sequel to 'Little Bat from the Dungeons'. Slightly AU.
1. The Best Birthday

**Disclaimer: Just like anyone else on the site, I don't own Harry Potter. **

**The character of Cassie is mine, though, and so are Laura, Kenya and any other OCs. I also claim full credit/blame for the writing and elements of the plot.**

**A/N: It's taken forever, I know. But here it is, the moment you've all forgotten about – Little Bat and the Chamber of Secrets! I hope it's worth the wait, and please leave a review if you enjoy it!**

**The Best Birthday**

"If I could have everybody's attention, please?" Narcissa Malfoy waited until all eyes were on her, then gracefully guided their eyes to her husband as he stood at the head of the table to make a toast. "Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We are all here, as you know, to celebrate the birthday of my son, Draco. He is a vital part of the next generation of purebloods, and has just completed his first year at Hogwarts, where he has upheld the family name admirably…"

Cassie tuned out. She didn't want to hear Lucius Malfoy spout Pureblood propaganda any more than she needed reminding that they had survived their first year at Hogwarts. She knew that she'd been up to things that Draco's father would certainly disapprove of, such as reading about Muggles and, worse, conversing with Muggle-born Gryffindors… She was glad that she wasn't a Malfoy, although they'd never shown her anything but kindness. Cassie had no idea how her best friend could stand the pressure.

Laura hadn't been able to make it to the party, so Draco and Cassie were sat alone together at the foot of the table. The rest of the long table – set up in the dining room despite the beautiful summer weather – was filled with elder members of the Malfoys, Parkinsons, Notts, and any other distinguished Pureblood clan you could name. Cassie realised that she herself carried the Prince name, and wondered if her friend Laura had in fact been excluded on the grounds of her uncertain magical heritage. 'Smith', after all, was not a distinguished, Pureblood name.

Draco poked her with his foot under the table and leant over to speak quietly in her ear. "Want to disappear?" Cassie glanced at Lucius and back. "It's fine," Draco hissed, as if reading her thoughts. "I always go off during the speech, tea's finished anyway so everyone's in a good mood. Dobby will cover for us… Come on." They slipped away from the table and the blond led the way out into the grounds, easily striding ahead of his shorter companion, whose long, dark hair flew out behind her as she ran to catch up.

A few hours later found them sitting in a tree in an orchard, two _Nimbus 2001_ brooms leant casually against the trunk below them, laughing about their year. "I can't believe he thought Pomfrey was going to buy that he was bitten by a dog," Draco scoffed, "it turned _green_, for Merlin's sake!"

Cassie grinned. "And you're going to try out for the Quidditch team this year? So no doubt you'll get your share of strange injuries there." After the way she'd seen Draco fly just an hour ago, she had no doubt he'd make it onto the team. He was about to reply when Dobby appeared below them. "Dobby is coming to tell you that your cousin has arrived, Miss Prince. Master Draco." He bowed, and vanished again. Draco swung from the tree and caught a reluctant Cassie as she lowered herself down. "I suppose I'd better go." Draco nodded. "Come back over the summer some time, it gets boring with just my parents around." Cassie promised, then went off to find her cousin, who was blond again today as part of his disguise.

For some reason Cassie couldn't quite fathom, her cousin and guardian thought it unwise for anyone to know of the family ties between Cassandra Prince and Severus Snape. At least it would keep her from being accused of favouritism at school. She thanked her hosts for having her, then headed home to Spinner's End ready to enjoy her summer.


	2. News

**Disclaimer: Just like anyone else on the site, I don't own Harry Potter. **

**The character of Cassie is mine, though, and so are Laura, Kenya and any other OCs. I also claim full credit/blame for the writing and elements of the plot.**

**A/N: I've got no internet – strangely, this seems to have sped up the update somewhat. I'm at my olds' using their webs, so don't expect fast replies to any reviews. However, I'd still love to get them. Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter. Enjoy!**

_Dear Laura,_

_Did you get my last letter? Anyway, when you get this one, please write back just so I know you haven't broken your hand or something. Or if you have, could you get someone else to write to me so that I know you __have__? I hope your holidays are going well. Mine have so far been uneventful, apart from Draco's party which of course you know about. Do write back soon and send me all your news!_

_Cassie_

No sooner had she sent the letter off with Mopsus and sat back down at the desk than there was a tap at the window. Without looking up from her parchment, she reached across and opened it. "That was quick, you're not telling me-" She glanced at the bird to realise that it was not her pet at all, but a rather haughty-looking Ministry owl with its distinctive, embossed letter pouch. "Oh. Sorry. Grab yourself an Owl Treat if you like… Thanks." The moment she had removed her letter, the owl fluttered across to the bowl of treats, which was somewhat unusual as Ministry owls rarely accepted anything from their recipients, and began rapidly transferring treat after treat into its pouch. Cassie found this mildly amusing, but her attention was drawn to the envelope she had just received. It had a stamp on it.

_Miss C. Prince_

_c/o Miss Meredith Prince_

_c/o M.O.M_

_London_

There must have been wizards working in the Muggle postal service for this to reach her. It had clearly been sent the Muggle way as far as the Ministry, but Cassie didn't know any Muggles. Who could have sent her the letter? She ripped it open, curiosity overcoming her.

_Dear Cassandra,_

_I know you'll be wondering who has written to you. You won't recognise my handwriting, and you know nothing about me. But the fact remains that I am your father. Your mother once told me that if I wanted to get in touch, I should do so through your Ministry thing, and if she has given you this message then she can't have changed her mind about me contacting you. I would like to meet you, my daughter, after all these years, if this is agreeable to you. I can be found at Frimley Park Hospital. I know that you must have many questions and that this must seem a bolt from the blue, but please come. If you want to see me, please come to the hospital on the 28__th__ of July._

_Sincerely,_

_Joe Vanstone_

"Cassie, I'm back. Do you want lunch?" When Severus returned from his short trip to Diagon Alley, it was to find no sign of his ward. "Cassie?" There was no reply. Severus dropped his shopping in the kitchen and raced upstairs, wand drawn, fearing the worst but not quite sure what 'the worst' could be. On entering his cousin's room, however, he found her simply sat at her desk, tears streaming down her cheeks, but in no obvious danger. "What's wrong?" She looked up at him. "He doesn't know she's dead… my father. He wrote to me… He doesn't know. He doesn't know anything about me!" Severus knelt down beside the chair at the desk, slipping an arm around her. "Shhh. It's alright. Now… tell me what's happened to get you so upset. From the beginning."

Scanning the letter as she spoke, Severus was soon up to speed on Cassie's father's sudden reappearance in her life. He picked up the envelope, thoughtfully turning it over in his hands. There was, as Cassie had pointed out, a stamp on it. _Second class._ "I didn't even know if my father was still alive… and now he wants to meet me? At a hospital? He works at a hospital?" Severus traced the indents in the paper the letter was written on. Similar words seemed to have been written on another piece of paper, and another, on top of the piece he was now holding. Clearly the writer had been determined to make the letter perfect. His own father would never have made so much effort. "So… do you think I should go?" Severus sighed. "I think it's up to you. If you want to go, I can take you there. But this is your choice." His eye was caught by the empty bowl of Owl Treats. "What happened to those? Oh, no… We've been hit by Cuthbert, haven't we?" Cassie blinked at him uncertainly. "Cuthbert?" Snape raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you've never heard of Cuthbert, the corrupt Ministry Owl. Apparently he's the only bird in Britain to take backhanders." She managed a smile at that. "So, having eaten all the Owl Treats…?" Her cousin shrugged. "He'll probably just deliver your next Ministry letter faster, although he has been known to deliberately 'lose' things like Howlers as they pass through the Sorting Office."

Two days later, Severus was reading in his study when the door swung open. "Sev?" He marked his place and closed the book, turning to his cousin. "I was wondering… Would you mind taking me to visit my father on the 28th?" He smiled. "Of course not. You've decided to go, then?" She nodded. "I just want to know… what he's like."

"Sev… I'm nervous." They were standing in an alley around the corner from Spinner's End. "You don't have to go, if you don't want to." She shook her head. "No, I want to. I'll be fine. But… it's just scary. And I've never Apparated before, either." He took her arm. "It's easy. Has someone been telling you Splinching stories?" She nodded. "Well, we'll go on three. One… two…" He turned on the spot, still holding her arm tightly, and before they knew it they were stood in a grove of trees in the middle of a sunny park. "There. That wasn't so bad, was it?" They began walking towards the hospital, which was visible at the other side of the grass, but just before they reached the road, Cassie stopped. "Do you mind waiting here? There's a bench… This is just something I think I should do on my own." He squeezed her arm in farewell, and took a seat to await her return. With a deep breath, his cousin crossed the road, looked back once, and walked into the hospital.

Severus hadn't been to this part of Muggle Britain before. It wasn't terrible, he supposed – certainly not the dirty ghetto Lucius Malfoy seemed to think all Muggle towns were – but after fifteen minutes it was already almost intolerably dull. He was sure that a wizard such as Arthur Weasley would find sitting here fascinating, even to the point of refusing to leave until he worked out the function of the nearby postbox, but for Severus, who'd grown up in the Muggle world, there was nothing to hold his interest. He decided to focus his mind on a recent challenge from his _Pondering Potions_ magazine – he had a subscription to several more scholarly publications, but always found that _Pondering Potions_ stretched his brain more by asking questions than his other journals did by asking questions – and became completely lost in thought.

He would have to check with Irma Pince that the Hogwarts library had a subscription – if it wasn't a direct contradiction to his formidable teaching style, he'd be inclined to set a couple of these challenges as homework for his more gifted pupils. They may be mere timewasters to a Potions Master like himself, but these puzzles would present a real challenge to a fourth- or fifth-year. At any rate, he knew the solution to this week's most difficult question, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it… It would come to him. And so Severus sat on the bench and thought.

"I'm sorry, we don't have any member of staff called Joe Vanstone. Are you sure he works here? Let me run a patient check, one moment please." The receptionist smiled and tapped away at her computer for a moment – Cassie watched curiously – before making a small noise of triumph. "Ah! Here he is. I knew I recognised the name – he has two visitors today already. A popular man." Cassie followed the directions she was given and soon found herself outside the door to a private room. She paused a moment to gather her thoughts. _A patient? I suppose I should have thought of this… but why would he contact me now, when he's obviously not feeling his best? And he must have been in here at least a week or two… Who are these other visitors, anyway? He must have known I'd turn up…_

She took a deep breath, knocked on the door and pushed it open. A man a little older than her mother would be now looked up from where he lay in bed and smiled. "Come in, you must be…" He trailed off, looking hopeful, and Cassie wondered if he had amnesia of some sort. After all, he had written to her asking to visit today. "Cassie Prince. You… asked to see me?" She eyed the other two people in the room suspiciously. One was a boy who looked to be about 18, the other a fifteen year-old girl. Both bore a passing resemblance to the man in the bed, and both were regarding her intently. "Ah, yes! Cassie, of course. Memory's going in my old age, you know," He seemed to be forcing the cheerful tone of his voice slightly, but Cassie supposed it was a little awkward to meet your 12 year-old daughter for the first time – especially if you forgot her name. "I'd like you to meet Oliver and Jenny." Cassie smiled at them, but Oliver was having none of it. He exploded at Joe.

"I can't believe you! She's older than Kate. You cheated on Mum _again_? You were together for twelve _years_ and now I find out that not only do you have one illegitimate kid – and Thomas is sweet, I can deal with him, everyone makes mistakes – but now two half-sisters turn up? That makes what, five… six children for you now?" Cassie barely had time to register the shock before Jenny joined in, more gently. "I know you told my mum you were married, eventually, but I had no idea… Why didn't you tell her you had children? I had half-siblings and you never even mentioned it? How many birthdays have we spent together and you never mentioned that?"

Cassie's mind was reeling. These half-siblings of hers obviously knew her father much better than she did, and it sounded like he got around a bit. Joe Vanstone was already not the perfect father she'd always dreamed of, but she supposed real life was like that. "Why did you want to meet me now, after all these years?"

Joe sighed and pulled a scrappy piece of paper from his bedside cabinet and ticked next to an item on his list. "Why didn't you bring Kate with you, anyway, Oliver?" Oliver fumed. "Because she's far too young to be put through all this bul-" He suddenly glanced across at Cassie and shut up abruptly. "Language, Ollie," Joe admonished, laying the paper on his lap in a disapproving gesture. "Don't call me that! I'm not a kid!" Cassie and Jenny were no longer listening, too busy staring at the list on Joe's lap. Their father saw them looking and quickly slipped it back into a drawer, but it was too late.

_Joe Jr_

_Oliver_

_Thomas_

_Susan_

_Jennifer_

_Cassandra_

_James_

_Matthew_

_Katherine_

_Amelia_

_Geoffrey_

_Peter_

_Claire_

Those present had ticks beside their names, Susan and Katherine – Oliver's sisters, Cassie guessed – had crosses beside them and every name had a set of initials next to it. With a jolt, she realised that the initials beside her own name were her mother's. Most of the initials were entirely different – how many women and children did this man have to keep track of anyway?

Jenny stared at him. "That's, like, ten children! What's wrong with you, Dad? Can't you just stop sleeping around? Mum's gonna be so upset if I tell her…" Oliver raised an eyebrow. "Why would _she_ be upset? It was only an affair, not like they were ever married, not like my mum." They both looked at Cassie expectantly. She stared at them for a moment, unsure what they were looking for from her. When she realised, she forced a casual tone of voice. "Oh! Oh, no, my Mum's dead."

Draco was bored. He'd already been twice around the entire grounds on his broomstick and that was boring. He'd dive-bombed the peacocks, which was painful and boring. Dobby had bandaged up his hands, and that was boring. Now he had nothing to do. Momentarily glad that he could still hold a quill, he scribbled out a quick note.

_Hey,_

_I'm bored so I thought I'd write some letters. Haven't heard from you in a while. How are you doing?_

_Draco._

He called for Dobby, had the elf duplicate the letter (you could never be too careful about underage magic, and Lucius would be very angry if his son got him into any trouble with the Ministry), and wrote 'Kenya' and 'Laura' at the top of each. Truth be told, he'd only written to Kenya once after she left during their first week of Hogwarts, and that had been at Christmas. He hadn't written to Laura all holidays, except to check that she definitely couldn't come to his party. Dispatching Dobby to give the letters to his owl, he sat and glumly stared out of the window at the sunlight. He'd sit out there and wait for something interesting to happen, but the peacocks were still swarming around the front door, where they'd been forced to stop chasing him, and the back door, where they'd been before he upset them. Of course, being a mansion, the house had many other ways out, but there were locked doors between him and all other escape routes. He sighed. _How long can a peacock hold a grudge?_

It was going to be a long summer.

By the time the awkward silence died away, two boys had slipped into the room with identical grimaces. They looked about ten and didn't seem especially pleased to be here. "Mum explained everything, dropped us off and legged it. What's going on?" James and Matthew clearly hadn't known any more about their father than Cassie had until they'd received the letter. Cassie found herself liking them extra for it, against all logic. Before they could really catch up with things – and before Oliver could lay into his father again – they were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"How are you feeling today, Mr Vanstone? Oh – are these all your potential donors? I'll fetch a doctor to help process them all." The nurse slipped out again, oblivious, as five pairs of eyes settled on Joe.

Severus listened as Cassie finished explaining. "So you're being tested for compatibility?" He didn't understand why Cassie would go to all the trouble for a man who sounded like a nasty piece of work even to the Potions Master. Cassie nodded. "Yeah, me and the twins-" Severus cut in smoothly with a correction. "The twins and I." Cassie rolled her eyes. "No, Sev, it was definitely me. The _twins and I_ said we'd go for it if we could get permission – sign here, by the way – and Jenny said she'd think it over, but Oliver told him to stuff it." Severus signed and she dashed back into the building, returning without the form about half an hour later looking miserable.

"Not really how you hoped things would turn out, is it?" Cassie just hugged him and let him Apparate them home.


	3. Trifling Matters

**Disclaimer: Just like anyone else on the site, I don't own Harry Potter. **

**The character of Cassie is mine, though, and so are Laura, Kenya and any other OCs. I also claim full credit/blame for the writing and elements of the plot.**

**A/N: I have no excuse for how long this chapter took to write. Except that I only had the last line written down in my plan for this chapter, which is no excuse. Sorry. But some of the other 'books' in this series are progressing nicely now, so I know what I'm doing here a bit more. Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter. Enjoy!**

Cassie had moped for a day or two, but soon returned to her usual self. Finally, after three days of being followed around by a concerned Severus she couldn't take it anymore.

_31__st__ July._

_Dear Draco,_

_I am bored out of my cunning-and-ambitious mind here, and my cousin won't let me have anyone over._

This was technically true, but only because a visitor would be sure to uncover her relationship to Snape and that – for reasons Cassie still didn't understand – was dangerous. And, of course, she couldn't invite herself over to the Malfoys'; that would be extremely rude.

_Can we meet up in Diagon Alley or somewhere?_

_Cassie_

Mopsus had barely winged her way out of the window before she returned with a hastily-written reply.

_I was just about to owl you, actually. I'll see you at the Leaky Cauldron at three, after lunch._

_Draco._

Cassie breathed a deep sigh of relief and went to find Severus for permission.

Three o'clock eventually rolled around, and Cassie stepped carefully out of the fireplace into the Leaky Cauldron. Seeing no sign of her friend, she settled herself at the bar – where Tom, the barman, could keep an eye on her in case of shady customers – as per her cousin's strict instructions, and ordered a Butterbeer.

Draco was not one to be late, and sure enough, he soon appeared in the fireplace and strode over to the bar looking rather superior and pleased with himself. "Guess who finally got to Floo here on his own?" Cassie attempted to look impressed, although honestly she was surprised the Malfoys had insisted on holding his hand for this long. "Good for you. Butterbeer on me to celebrate?" She nodded at Tom and he produced another glass of the amber liquid for Draco with a wink. Butterbeer was among the least alcoholic drinks in the Wizarding World, but it still had a slight alcoholic content and the two twelve-year-olds were still the youngest people in the bar by a considerable amount. Draco's face lit up as he smiled and took a good sip. Conversation turned to their summers, and by the time they had finished their drinks they were still deep in conversation. An onlooker would have found it hard to believe that they had only been apart for a month or so.

Stepping into the warm sunlight of Diagon Alley, they decided to make their way towards Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlour via any other shop that caught their fancy. Cassie didn't have much spending money on her, and Draco was notoriously selective, even at his age, about what was worth his Sickles, so it was mostly to be window-shopping. They called into Eeylops' to buy some Owl Treats for their pets, and Cassie insisted on dragging her friend into Flourish & Blotts, where they were almost thrown out thanks to Draco's loud, often dismissive commentary on all of the autobiographies on sale whose authors Draco knew. "I bet I can guess how that one goes: It was at the age of nine that I discovered Firewhiskey, and it's a miracle I got through Hogwarts without my alcoholism becoming public knowledge. Oh, and this one -" He put on a ridiculously high, shrill voice, "I tried to get into Beauxbatons, but they said I wasn't pretty enough. Durmstrang wouldn't take me, because I wasn't powerful enough. And Hogwarts was offended that I hadn't applied to them first, so I had to be home-schooled by my parents until I was thirty-five." Cassie giggled, but the manager wasn't so impressed, so she pulled her friend away to a more academic section, where he was less likely to find anything amusing. Unfortunately, there was nothing Cassie wanted from that section, either, and since their Hogwarts book lists had not yet arrived, they left the shop empty handed, to the manager's further annoyance.

The next stop in their travels was the Quidditch supply shop window, where Draco ogled the latest broom on display with obvious longing. "I'm allowed to have a broom at Hogwarts this year, and I want one of those." Cassie looked over the broom with mild interest, noting the sleek tail and the gold lettering of the words Nimbus Two Thousand and One on the handle. "It looks nice. Do you reckon your parents will get you one?" Draco shrugged. "Probably, if I make the team. What did you want in here, anyway?" She looked faintly sheepish. "Some Keeper's gloves. They're really good all-rounders, I could use them to keep my hands warm in the dungeons, and to stop myself getting hurt in Herbology... not to mention, Mopsus isn't always very good at her landings." Draco winced in sympathy and thought for a moment. Keeper's gloves were indeed sturdy and durable, and the fact that they were generally fingerless meant that they didn't interfere with anything you happened to be doing with your hands. Besides, in case he had to use a Hogwarts broom for tryouts this year, it would be best to have some protection from splinters... "Good idea. Let's both get some."

Emerging triumphantly with their new purchases, they looked around for somewhere else to visit. There was the Magical Menagerie, of course, but they both had their own pets at home and little interest in seeing more magical animals. Cassie remembered that she'd promised to pick up a list of ingredients at the apothecary, so she quickly pulled the list out, and handed it across the counter. "Quite a long list there, miss. It might take a while to find all these things out back; can you wait?" She assured him that she had been planning to spend at least another hour in Diagon Alley anyway and that she would return once she had finished her ice cream. The assistant's eyes glazed over for a moment and he licked his lips, but quickly sprang back to attention and went off to find her requested purchases. The seal of the Potions Master's Society at the bottom of the list was quite enough to assuage his concerns about her age in relation to the hazardous nature of some of the ingredients.

Stepping back outside, Cassie was almost blinded by the sunlight. "It's really dark in there. Where next?" It was soon agreed that Fortescue's was really the only place to be this afternoon, and they were soon installed at a table out at the front of the shop, chatting and trying to stop their delicious treats from simply dripping into nothing. "Heard from Kenya lately?" Draco asked, trying to look dignified at the same time as diving to catch an escaping Fizzing Whizbee chunk on his tongue. Cassie shook her head. "Not since we last spoke, no. Laura's been pretty quiet lately, too. Have you seen her this summer?" He hadn't; his father had been unable to find any information on Laura's Blood Status with only the last name 'Smith' to go on, and had therefore been disinclined to allow his son to invite her over, though not disquieted enough to stop him from being friends with the girl. "She's probably on holiday or something. Nothing to worry about." Cassie nodded, failing to realise that she had a smudge of chocolate ice cream on her nose. Draco reached out and wiped it off with his monogrammed handkerchief.

Neither of them noticed Florean Fortescue himself, rushed off his feet with customers but not too busy to notice the gesture and smile to himself, imagining all kinds of tender feelings between the two that weren't actually there. He had a terrible habit of making up stories in his head about his customers. The harried-looking Ministry of Magic employee reading the Daily Prophet over a sundae was clearly the jealous lover of the scruffy-looking bloke with a vanilla cone who was just walking away. She was following him, suspicious of an affair. It was quite obvious to Florean - just as obvious as that the two children sitting in the sunlight were fated to have a relationship far closer than that of two best friends, one day.

Draco nodded discreetly at the woman reading the Prophet and leant in to speak to Cassie. "The woman over there works at the Ministry - she's in charge of making sure Muggles don't panic when they see this place and cause a scene. The guy over there," he gestured dismissively at the man with the cone, "is probably a Muggle they have concerns about. You only really get Muggles here when their kids come to Hogwarts, so I suppose there's at least one Muggle-born in this year's intake."

Cassie chose to ignore his tone, suggesting instead that they hurry up and finish their ice creams before going back to the apothecary. Collecting a thoughtfully-shrunken crate of ingredients, Cassie handed over the Galleons Severus had given her for the purpose and turned back to Draco. "Well, I think we've run out of things to do here. It's been a really great afternoon." Draco nodded, then shrugged. "Want to come back to the Manor with me? Mother said you were quite welcome to, especially if it stops me harrassing the peacocks for a while, and... well, it's boring with nobody around." Cassie considered it for a moment, then nodded. "I'll have to let my cousin know." Draco nodded. "Well, I'm going to drop into Madam Malkin's to make an appointment for my robes to be tailored when my parents and I come for my school supplies, so if you want to send him an owl from the post office and meet me back at the Leaky...?" That suited Cassie quite well, considering that she needed to conceal her cousin's identity from her friend, and her errand was soon accomplished. The trip back to the Leaky Cauldron was never dull, with such a mixture of people passing through in every direction. A refined-looking lady wearing a large, ostentatious hat topped with what appeared to be a vulture swept by, dragging a boy behind her at such speed that Cassie didn't even catch a glimpse of his face. This was, apparently, the final straw for the Muggle they'd seen earlier, who was walking past with his wide-eyed daughter. As Cassie watched, he began shaking and whimpering and the witch from Fortescue's leapt in to steer the pair into a nice, cool, dark shop.

When Draco arrived, they stepped into the green flames together so that Cassie wouldn't be repelled by Malfoy Manor's rather ferocious wards. Tumbling out of the fireplace, giggling, they looked up to see the rather imposing figure of Lucius Malfoy himself. "Miss Prince. How delightful to see you again." He offered his hand to help her out of the grate, allowing Draco to step out behind her with his usual poise. "I hope you can keep Draco out of mischief; he's been herding the peacocks around all summer and they don't take too kindly to it." She nodded, making a mental note to ask Draco about the repeated mentions of peacock harrassment. Apparently he had been even more bored than her over the summer.

Eventually, after several games of Exploding Snap and a very frustrating game of Wizard's Chess - which culminated, after almost an hour, in an even more frustrating stalemate - it was time for Cassie to go home. Dobby appeared with a loud crack to inform her that her cousin had sent Mopsus with a note requesting that she return at once, and bowed, obviously about to leave, when Draco held up a hand to stop him. "Wait." He nudged Cassie and gestured at the elf. She laughed and, obviously trying not to offend or upset him, took a moment to choose her next words before giving up and just blurting out the question. "Dobby, why do you have trifle in your ears?"


	4. Get Back to Hogwarts

**Disclaimer: Just like anyone else on the site, I don't own Harry Potter. **

**The character of Cassie is mine, though, and so are Laura, Kenya and any other OCs. I also claim full credit/blame for the writing and elements of the plot.**

**A/N: I know, I know. I can't apologise enough for how long this has taken me… I'm gonna blame personal stuff and, well, the complete lack of canon references to the Slytherins pre-Hallowe'en. I will hopefully be updating sooner this time, since I've got the bit I was blocked on out of the way. Thanks for your patience and thanks as always to everyone who reviewed last chapter. Enjoy!**

"And he wouldn't answer?" Laura laughed. Draco shook his head. "No. He just went off to iron his ears as punishment for whatever it is he did to get it in there in the first place. It wasn't one of Mother's trifles, at any rate, so I don't see why it should be important." Cassie raised an eyebrow disapprovingly. "You still let him go off to get the ironing board, though, didn't you?" Draco waved a hand, unconcerned. "There would have been no stopping him. He's a very conscientious elf – centuries of obedience bred into him." Cassie shook her head and spotted something out of the corner of her eye. "What's-?"

She peered up at the sky outside the window of their compartment, but whatever she had seen was gone now. How strange – it had almost looked like a car appearing out of the clouds. She must have eaten a funny Pumpkin Pasty. "…Never mind. So, I heard your Dad got in a fight, Draco?" The blond boy glared at her – if looks could kill, Cassie would probably have caught fire there and then – but the damage was done. Laura wanted to know every detail, having apparently been out of the loop – and the country - all summer. Draco was forced to admit that yes, Lucius Malfoy had been involved in a common brawl in a bookshop "- but I saw the whole thing, and Weasley definitely started it. Father had the upper hand throughout, and was nothing but honourable, as befits a Malfoy." Cassie rolled her eyes – the letter Hermione Granger had sent her told a slightly different story - and turned her attention back to the scenery rushing past the _Hogwarts Express _until the conversation turned to more interesting subjects.

"Gilderoy Lockhart? My mum has a copy of all of his books – obviously, so do I now – she thinks he's dreamy." Laura's blush suggested that her mother might not be alone in this opinion. Indeed, Cassie knew that half the witches in the Wizarding World would do almost anything to get a smile from Lockhart, but she'd never seen the attraction herself. His charms seemed mostly to affect the over-40s of the female population, and probably a few wizards. She let the conversation wash over her again as Draco told Laura about all the people his family were connected to who were _ever _so close to Lockhart, and Laura swooned every time he drew breath. It was going to be a very long train journey, at this rate.

"…and I just can't tell you how lucky you all are that I graciously agreed to accept this role. Obviously, this level of celebrity is a new experience for Hogwarts – no offence meant, Mr Potter!" Lockhart grinned toothily at them all before he noticed the absence of said celebrity. "I say, it seems Harry has decided not to join us for the feast tonight. No doubt he felt he couldn't compete with my star quality!" Draco was still sniggering when Dumbledore finally stood up to announce the food. Cassie flicked her eyes over to the Gryffindor table and noticed that, sure enough, neither Potter or his irritating friend Weasley were present. Hermione was sitting alone, surrounded by people who were studiously ignoring her, apart from the little red-haired girl she had flagged down immediately after her Sorting. The girl was clearly angry about something, occasionally gesturing towards the front of the hall and at one point, Cassie was sure, miming putting on a hat, but Hermione was clearly just nodding along; her eyes never left the newest addition to the staff table.

Draco craned his neck around to see what she was looking at and sneered. "Oh, Granger. Pathetic, isn't it? She doesn't have any other friends, so she forces the littlest Weasel to listen to her." Cassie raised an eyebrow; Hermione wasn't even talking. "And here comes big brother Weasel, probably wants to know where the other one is." The Prefect leaning over the pair of Gryffindors did seem agitated, but when he was joined by his twin brothers, his expression went from anxious to livid in a matter of seconds. He snatched the newspaper they were waving aloft and stalked off, leaving the twins to slip into seats opposite their sister and her friend. Cassie frowned. "What's up with him?" Draco was already rummaging in his bag, not even pretending not to be interested in – albeit disdainful of – what was going on at the Gryffindor table, before triumphantly pulling out a copy of the _Evening Prophet._ He slammed it down on the table, Sports page up, while he sorted his bag out again. Laura dragged her eyes away from Lockhart for long enough to become confused. "How did you get that? We've been on the train all day." Draco rolled his eyes, flipping the paper over to see the front page. "I have a _full _subscription; it updates throughout the- oh, _that's _priceless. If this is what the Gryffindors were looking at, Potter's going straight home."

The other Slytherins leant over to see what had put him in such a good mood. _MUGGLES SPOT FLYING CAR OVER LONDON - LUTON – COVENTRY- BIRMINGHAM – PRESTON …_ The name kept changing, showing town after town. "A flying car? Where would Harry Potter even get a flying car? I thought he lived with Muggles…" Laura frowned, but nothing was wiping the smirk off of Draco's face. "He probably stole their car and enchanted it himself. Either way, I'm pretty sure he won't have to bother unpacking." Sure enough, by the time the students streamed out into the corridors after the feast, there was still no sign of Potter or Weasley.

The next morning, Cassie was late to breakfast. She entered the Great Hall to see Draco glaring at a wall with a face like thunder, Laura sat beside him trying to suppress the laughter threatening to overcome her. It didn't take long to work out why he was angry; at the Gryffindor table, Hermione was once again sat with her best friends, calmly reading as they laughed at something or other. She sighed and made her way to the Slythering table.

"Guess he's not on the train home then." Draco looked up at her voice, revealing a scowl that could melt stone. "Of course not; Dumbledore's wonder boy can't get enough chances, can he? He's probably getting extra attention-seeking classes with Lockhart or something." Personally, Cassie thought that in itself would be enough punishment. "I'd seek Lockhart's attention…" Laura didn't seem to be aware that she had sighed the words out loud until Draco's scowl finally vanished to be replaced with a giggle most unbefitting a Malfoy. Cassie couldn't help but smile too, as Laura went bright red.

Just then, the post owls swept in. The small, innocent-looking red envelope which promptly exploded in Weasley's face cheered Draco up no end, and provided a welcome distraction for certain flustered young witches. "You put one more toe out of line…" Cassie couldn't imagine a situation ever arising where she could offend the Weasley matriarch but she was definitely sure she didn't want to.

A few hours later, Cassie and Hermione were sharing a lunch-time study session in the library. Honestly, Cassie shouldn't have been surprised that their secret friendship had not been exposed – Draco was never seen in the library unless marched there at wandpoint and Laura had been spending more and more time in the Owlery and other such bizarre locations. As for Hermione's friends, they'd rather be anywhere but the library, apparently.

"So, how did your mates manage to stay at Hogwarts? It was them in the flying car, wasn't it?" Hermione sighed, turning a page in the textbook she was looking at. "Yes, it was, as if you didn't hear the Howler. I have no idea. I think it probably has something to do with our Quidditch chances; doesn't everything around here?" Cassie rolled her eyes in recognition of the truth in that comment, but waited to see if the Gryffindor would continue. "Ginny was really angry that they missed her Sorting, though… Ron's little sister. She was sat with me at the feast, which is good, since nobody else would." Cassie nodded. "Is that what all this was about, then?" She mimicked the girl from the previous evening, angrily miming putting on the Sorting Hat. Her friend giggled. "Yes, that was Ginny. Then of course the twins figured out what had happened, and Percy completely lost it. Of course, the twins think it's brilliant." They laughed. "Of course. Oh, look at this charm, by the way…" Cassie passed her book across the table for Hermione to see, and the subject was closed. They stayed in the library, comparing notes and catching up on the summer's events, until it was time for afternoon classes.


	5. Beetles, Buttons, Banshees and Boasts

**Disclaimer: Just like anyone else on the site, I don't own Harry Potter. **

**The character of Cassie is mine, though, and so are Laura, Kenya and any other OCs. I also claim full credit/blame for the writing and elements of the plot.**

**A/N: I'm going to stop saying "I'll update sooner next time" – a more effective jinx I never did see. I've been without internet for nearly three months now. Yes, it was painful. At any rate, here is a new chapter, which I hope you'll enjoy.**

The next morning was spent in a sort of trance induced by Professor Binns' History of Magic. Lunch passed peacefully in a discussion about yesterday's Herbology lesson, and then it was time to head for Charms. They had to prod Crabbe and Goyle – a brave undertaking in anyone's book – to remind them to come along.

"Is it worth cutting through the courtyard?" Cassie was looking dubiously up at the Great Hall's enchanted ceiling as they left. "It looks like it might rain any moment." Laura hesitated, then nodded. "It isn't right now, though. And if we wanted to go right round the corridors, we needed to have left about five minutes ago." So the courtyard route it was. As it turned out, the shortcut was not destined to get them to class much sooner than the long way, as Draco had to stop to appreciate the bizarre sight of a tiny first-year begging Potter for an autograph.

"_Signed photos_? You're giving out _signed photos_, Potter?" Cassie and Laura were halfway across the courtyard before they realised the boys had stopped, and they felt no particular inclination to rush back and rejoin them. Taking the opportunity to stop and pull their scarves out from the bottom of their schoolbags – it was a horrible day, after all – they were content to wait under one of the covered walkways around the sides of the open space and watch Draco make a nuisance of himself. "Everyone queue up!" He was shouting, "Harry Potter's giving out signed photos!"

Cassie sniggered. "I didn't know he wanted one that much. It's cute how excited he is, though." Laura grinned. "Don't let him hear you say that. You know how he is…" Together, they imitated their friend under their breath. "Malfoys. Are not. Cute!"

Things were beginning to get ugly in the middle of the courtyard, Weasley even going so far as to pull his wand out – and really, what had happened to that? It looked like it was being held together by Spellotape – and Cassie wondered if perhaps they should intervene before Crabbe and Goyle started throwing punches, but then Hermione Granger snapped her book shut and put a hand on the redhead's arm. This would probably have diffused the situation anyway, judging by the slightly terrified look on Weasley's face, but the immediate arrival of Lockhart brought a certain amount of security back to the scene. Nobody was about to be hexed right in front of a teacher; even Gryffindors had more sense than that.

As the professor grabbed Potter, posing for the first-year's camera, Draco slipped back through the crowd. Ignoring Laura, who was now practically drooling, he grinned at Cassie. "Lockhart's got him now, he can't get out of that. Couldn't have _planned_ that better. Well, I probably could – I am a Malfoy, after all. Now let's go, we're late for charms." Grabbing one of Laura's arms each, they managed to propel her down the corridor and arrived at the Charms classroom with barely a minute to spare.

It was early in the morning, the sky was still grey, and Cassie was in no mood for boring lessons or lovesick friends. She couldn't understand why Laura still had to be physically dragged out of the DADA classroom after the lesson they'd just had. No matter how many times their teacher had won an award for his smile, it didn't change the fact that he was the dullest wizard alive _and_ seemed to have no idea what he was supposed to be teaching them. Honestly, the man could almost make Binns sound like a great candidate for an after-dinner speaking engagement. There had been some very promising rumours about pixies from the general direction of Gryffindor House, but obviously the news they'd had third-hand from the Ravenclaws was a load of rubbish because the class turned out to involve nothing more exciting than a quiz based on his autobiography. The questions didn't have anything to do with Defence – Cassie doubted knowing what Lockhart's favourite colour was would help them to deal with a banshee, but he neglected to ask them about his greatest fear, which might have been at least vaguely relevant to learning about Boggarts.

Laura, however, was still fluttering her eyelashes in the direction of the teacher's desk by the time Cassie had finished packing her bag. Draco shrugged at her and gestured for her to start packing away their friend's things too. In response to her quizzical look, he smirked. "Mother always taught me not to go through a lady's bag." And with that, he left. Cassie hoped he at least had the decency to explain to Professor McGonagall where they were – preferably with a reasonable excuse rather than the more honest 'Cassie was trying to help Laura scrape her jaw off the floor after Defence Against the Dark Arts'. Eventually, she managed to wrestle the last quill into Laura's bag and dragged her friend, protesting, out into the corridor past a queue of Hufflepuffs who looked as if they hadn't been disabused of the pixie notion yet.

Transfiguration was probably the worst possible class they could have been late for. McGonagall briefly looked as if she was toying with the idea of turning them both into pencils and snapping them in half, but settled for docking them points instead and giving them a withering glare. Infuriatingly, Draco was still smirking.

Turning a beetle into a button seemed a lot more interesting than usual when compared to Lockhart's quiz, so Cassie set to work with enthusiasm. Laura, however, seemed less content to focus. Fortunately, the smitten student was sitting beside Draco, but Cassie could still hear her babbling from the next desk over. "And that banshee story he told us; that wasn't in the book, I checked twice. Do you think he'll keep telling us his secre- I mean, exclusive snippets – all year? I'd love to hear more about the Yeti, and I mean, how did he manage to keep up with his beauty regime when he was out in the mountains? He won _Witch Weekly_'s most charming smile award during the year he was away – for the second time running. Of course, he's won it several more times since then…"

Cassie glanced in their direction and caught Draco's eye as he made a dramatic, though completely silent, groaning motion. Laura, though she was looking his way, didn't appear to be aware of her surroundings at all; indeed, her beetle had crawled up her sleeve about a minute after she started speaking and she didn't seem to have noticed that yet. It was Cassie's turn to smirk, and her grin only widened when she turned back towards the front and realised that McGonagall had just Transfigured two spare beetles into earplugs and was putting them in under the pretence of adjusting her spectacles.

They were all quite relieved when they were released – five minutes early – and made their way en masse to the dungeons. No student, no matter how hopeless her crush, would dare to prattle on about it in Professor Snape's class, where an hour of blessed silence reigned. Fortunately, by the time they had finished brewing, Laura had completely lost her previous train of thought and was muttering about the slightly off shade her potion had turned by the end of the lesson.


End file.
